Gilles de Rais in the Lake of Fire 3

Turns 1-7
Turns 8-14

Turn 15 - Nobody expects the Infernal Inquisition
Lilith hires the Usurpers Own. The immortal bitch begins to gather quite the army. She might become a threat, after all.
I increase the Intelligence of the avatar to 4, which means one more order slot per turn for Gilles.
Bifrons is assigned to the defence of the stronghold. If it falls, everything is lost.
The Infernal Inquisition goes on a spree of investigations and tortures. Gilles de Rais manages to deflect their attentions to his neighbors.

Turn 16 - I need hellfire
Sitri hired the Legion of Blood.
As usual, I am in dire need of hellfire. Gilles demands a tribute from his legions.
Asmodeus needs to conquer four Cantons before Gilles can become his Blood Slave.

Turn 17 - Rebels
Asmodeus and Murmur try to recoup their losses (apparently the Inquisition was quite harsh with them), by hiring respectively the Hammers of Hell and the Grinning Legion.
The sudden loss of the Palace on the Lake of Fire does only slow Asmodeus but not enough for the other archfiends to hope to surpass him anytime soon.
Gilles promotes the Slaves and demands tributes, including curiosities such as magical parchments.

Turn 18 - Switching my stare to Sitri
Paimon has taken possession of the Altar of Abomination.
Since Lilith's domain extends continuously on my Eastern frontier, and I would need warring against two different enemies before reaching the Palace, I do not plan to wage war in the East for the time being. Instead, I move my Slaves in the proximity of the Gardens of Infernal Delights. This way, they can better guard them while keeping close to the borders of Sitri's kingdom. The official pretext for this move is the celebration of their recent award, the Infernal Order of the Black Ring.
More resources are demanded.

Turn 19 - Playing to lose
More resources are demanded and consolidated. Gilles de Rais remains passive. Unfortunately, Asmodeus seems to be stuck at 27 Cantons while 32 are necessary for the master plan. Gilles de Rais wonders if he will have to engineer a war only to lose some territory.

Turn 20 and 21 - Hellfire is the new oil
Hellfire is still missing in the coffers and resources are gathered by the legions for the pleasure of their master.

Turns 22-28

Gilles de Rais in the Lake of Fire 2

Turns 1-7

Turn 8 - Test of Loyalty
Gilles de Rais demands tribute from his minions. More souls, ichor, hellfire and darkness!
Gilles de Rais wishes to please the Conclave. He needs the Conclave, and he needs some Prestige to use in aggressive diplomacy. But Eligos is too useful at this stage. Gilles de Rais chooses to defy the Infernal Conclave and accept the loss of Prestige. To make a little show of this act of independence, he orders the Slaves led by Eligos to march in front of the gates of Pandemonium.

Turn 9 - All disobeyed
It looks like every archfiend disobeyed the decision of the Conclave and incurred a disastrous loss of reputation. Good; Asmodeus was beginning to pull ahead.
A bit of a situation is developing next to Pandemonium: a standoff between my army and Lilith's. Lilith blocks the shortest path to the North where my undefended stronghold remains.
I could try to provoke her into a Vendetta:
- advantages: after an easy victory, my territory would surround Pandemonium and my logistics would become easier;
- disadvantages: Lilith is not a threat to me; she might prove useful as a meatshield between me and more dangerous foes.
Alternately, I could turn around and go all the way back around the mountains.
In the end, I decide that I will leave the Slaves in the South to protect the Gardens and watch over Pandemonium, and that I will build new armies to protect the North. This plan, which is merely a part of the devious master plan of Gilles de Rais, is going to cost a lot. Tribute is demanded twice.

Turn 10 - The Gluttony of Asmodeus
Asmodeus, on a rampage, conquers the Palace of Gluttony.
Gilles de Rais bids on the Burning Legion and demands tribute. He orders his seneschal to prepare fortified barracks in the outskirts of his infernal city.

Turn 11 - The Burning Legion
Seduced by promises of mayhem, the Burning Legion joins the ranks of the army of Gilles de Rais; it is stationed next to the master's stronghold.
Asmodeus is, once again, far ahead everybody else in Prestige score (30, vs. 7 for Gilles).
I decide to spend a few resources to increase Gilles's pathetic Martial Skill from 0 to 1. Joan of Arc's epic military campaigns are but memories for the archfiend, but cunning will not be enough to win the throne.
More tribute is demanded.

Turn 12 - Bullying Lilith
The Praetor named Phenex was acquired by unknown parties. At last, Prestige is high enough again for Gilles to begin to make bold statements in front of the Conclave. Specifically, he claims that Lady Lilith's servants crossed over his territory and he demands some tribute in compensation. Archers wielding poisonous bows are waiting for the order to strike...

Turn 13 - Not enough hellfire
I am in desperate need of some hellfire to raise Gilles's Intelligence from 3 to 4. I demand tribute again but, in the meantime, I decide to bid on Bifrons (one more soul is given away to win the auction) to help in the potential war against Lilith.

Turn 14 - Asmodeus, again
Lilith has taken the Wall of Envy but Gilles de Rais is not afraid, especially with Bifrons on his side. What scares him is Asmodeus's instoppable advance. The archfiend's legions have sieged and conquered the mythical Palace on the Lake of Fire, which is sure to boost enormously his already impressive powers.
Lilith concedes wisely to my demand - I need to wait two turns before I can make another one.
Besides demanding tribute, I consolidate existing tribute in order to make it possible to pay the next avatar improvement.

State of the hell at the end of turn 14:
- movements of troops suggest a conflict with the Marquis Sitri might be brewing, both in the North and in the South; Gilles de Rais will keep fortifying his assets;
- the Prince Asmodeus is a superpower, earning 8 Prestige per turn. At this stage, Gilles de Rais can hardly oppose his meteoric rise to power. If you can't fight them, join them? Asmodeus is an obvious candidate for the role of Blood Lord. Gilles now has a frontier with Asmodeus (west of the Gardens) and that is a necessary condition for this relationship to develop. However, he owns too many Cantons of Hell to be eligible for blood slavery, according to the Protocols of Hell. Gilles will watch, avoid unecessary conquests and then officially submit to Asmodeus. If another archfiend becomes Asmodeus's right hand before him, Gilles will try to destroy this rival.

Turns 15-21

Gilles de Rais in the Lake of Fire

This is an after action report for the turn-based strategy game Solium Infernum.

Archfiend creation
A pervert heart pulses again. Gilles de Montmorency-Laval, also known as Gilles de Rais, was a wicked diabolist in 15th century France and used to sacrifice babies in black masses. After his death, his soul was fittingly hanged in the Gardens of Infernal Delights, to be abused by the patrons of this horrific grove. The suffering experienced under its branches warped Gilles beyond anything recognizable. Consumed with lust, he wishes to inflict these pleasures unto others until Hell itself gets old: his public objective is the conquest of the Gardens.
Somehow, armed with but his wits and forbidden knowledge, Gilles de Rais escaped from the Gardens. He transformed into a demon with the help of dark sorceries that were never meant to be. The face he wears nowadays in the streets of Hell is new and barely hides unbound ambitions. He has risen to the position of Lord, the lowest rank in the Infernal Conclave. Other archfiends deem him to be an obscure upstart and a nobody. A mere French sorcerer does not hold much clout amid mesopotamian gods. That is their mistake. Gilles is a seer and, as such, can potentially master incredible rituals of Prophecy, which will help him in the great game ahead. This knowledge may even be enough to make him the Power Behind the Throne: if he becomes the Blood Vassal of the one who would win the war for the throne of Lucifer, Gilles will become the true victor. Controlling the crown of the Lightbringer would become his stepping stone before the conquest of Paradise itself.

Turn 1 - Far from the Gardens
The Garden of Delights is located far away from Gilles's fortress (and close to Pandemonium).
Getting beyond these southern mountains first will be difficult:
- Lilith, Lord of Hell (objective: pride), reigns east of the Garden;
- Sitri, Marquis of Hell (wrath), reigns south of the Garden and north of Gilles de Rais's little empire;
- Paimon, Baron of Hell (wrath), reigns far away in the East;
- Asmodeus, Prince of Hell (envy), reigns southwest of Gilles's fortress;
- Murmur, Lord of Hell (wrath), reigns northwest of Gilles's fortress.
The Black Altar of Despair, in the East, looks like a tempting target for the Legion of the Slaves of Gilles de Rais, provided they can first reinforce a little bit.
Gilles de Rais demands tribute twice. Let the damned in his path pay the ultimate price!
Gilles de Rais does not wish to enrich his enemies. This event will not take place.

Turn 2 - An ally
In the Infernal Bazaar, Asmodeus buys the Ten Thousand Screaming Bastards and Lilith buys Acheron's Butchers. The Slaves of Sitri beeline southward for the Dark Altar of Despair; Lilith's army does also move south.
Gilles de Rais bids on Great Duke Eligos (overbidding with 1 soul ) then demands a tribute of souls. His soulless archers could use a commander such as Eligos.

Turn 3 - Irritated by Marquis Sitri
News tell the story of the siege and fall of the Iron Staircase by minions of Asmodeus. Howls from beyond the horizon announce the acquisition of the Hounds of Hell by Paimon.
No fanfare salutes the arrival of Great Duke Eligos in the service of Gilles de Rais. Quickly, without a whisper, Eligos takes the lead of the Slaves of Gilles de Rais and heads south, since the Black Altar of Despair is obviously lost to Sitri.

Turn 4 - Despair is Sitri's weapon
Sitri, indeed, now owns the Black Altar of Despair. Murmur hires the Lethean Phalanx.
I need 1 more hellfire before I can raise Gilles's Intelligence and thus Prophecy.
The army moves south, tribute is demanded.

Turn 5 - Places of Power fall to demonkind
Murmur appropriates the Pillar of Skulls while Paimon climbs the Summit of Mount Erebus.
The army moves south, tribute is demanded.

Turn 6 - The rise of Asmodeus
Asmodeus overtakes the Gates of Hell; his power and prestige begin to impress his peers.
I increase Gilles de Rais's Intelligence from 2 to 3.
The Slaves, led by Eligos, shoot a dense cloud of poisoned arrows against the Gardens of Infernal Delights, while the army of Lilith begins to show up at the horizon.

Turn 7 - The Gardens are mine!
So many arrows... When the Slaves move in with their swords, the guardians of the Gardens are already incapacitated.
I decide to keep and use as soon as possible this new event in order to reward the Slaves.
Gilles de Rais demands tribute twice. More souls to eat!

State of the hell at the end of turn 7:
- no more Place of Power in reach; it means that the powers that be will begin to look at ways to encroach on their neighbours' territories and strongholds;
- no direct confrontation impending; Gilles de Rais has some time to build appropriate defences against would-be invaders;
- borders: Paimon with Lilith Asmodeus and Murmur, Murmur with Lilith Asmodeus and Paimon, Lilith with Paimon Sitri Murmur and Gilles de Rais, Sitri with Lilith and Gilles de Rais, Asmodeus with Paimon and Murmur, Gilles de Rais with Sitri and Lilith.
I decide to adjust threats in this order: Sitri (who "stole my altar"), Asmodeus (powerful, prestigious), Lilith (close, too close), Paimon and Murmur (not my neighbours).

Turns 8-14
Turns 15-21